Today was Gray Catbird day. We doubled our numbers of them from last week. They are definitely on the move back North.
Through the Fall and Winter a majority of the Gray Catbirds captured were juveniles. All but one of ours today were adults.
You can tell the juvenile by its attitude alone.
An interesting note: we never caught a Catbird today in the same net. They were scattered pretty evenly across the property.
For each Gray Catbird we did catch, several more were in every patch of trees and shrubs. Surprised we didn't catch many more. They were around wherever you turned.
We discovered a pilfered turtle nest along the lanes. This time of year, turtles are laying eggs and Raccoons are trying to find them.
Finally a break from the grey, except for the light sprinkles we had all morning. Connie brought back a female Northern Parula that dropped in while she was watering some of her plantings.
Northern Parula arrive early in the migration cycle and breed all over the property. Mom must have been out getting breakfast for her newly hatched babies. It was evident by her very visible brood patch that she has a nest very close by. When incubating their eggs, bird shed some feathers to give a direct transfer of heat from their bodies. The feathers will return not long after the eggs have hatched.
A nice break in the morning, but back to Gray Catbirds!
As Connie got the next one out of Net 12, she felt a presence. Several in fact. The Barred Owl family was just overhead. We have been trying to listen for a baby screeching in the morning but it seems they nested farther away the baby is a baby no more.
One more Gray Catbird. We missed getting a photo of the last one but we are sure you have the ID down by now.
The river is the lowest it has been in a couple of years. Due to the lack of rain of late, the water that remains is very clear. Lets us easily see the bottom and some invasive Armored Catfish from time to time.
Speaking of Barred Owl babies, Christine received a photo from a friend who lives not too far away from the park showing that they have two new ones in their nest box at home.
A productive day, even though it was repetitive. And gray. We made it to the cars just before the real rain arrived and headed home to 'stay'. Unless the rules change, we will try to head out again next week which will be Easter.
Since I have to Stay at Home, I might as well practice making tables again.
| Birds Processed | New | Recaptured | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gray Catbird | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Northern Parula | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Totals | 9 | 0 | 9 |
NOTE: To ensure the safety of our volunteers and the general public, new visitors are discouraged from attending banding at this time. The few of us who remain will update the blog as long as we can and hope to see new faces in the future. Thank you for your understanding during this unprecedented time.
Stay clean and safe!
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, April 12th.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.
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